Customer Reviews

Pajama Sam 2: Thunder and Lightening Aren't So Frightening

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My 4 year old daughter has had this program for about a month and absolutely loves the Pajama Sam character - a cute, polite, smart and persistent role model. So, it's quickly become one of her favorites and she initiates playing it often.

Pajama Sam's educational style is different than some other children's educational programs. It's learning how to solve problems through observation, memory, analysis, mental mapping, puzzle solving and trial and error. The scenario is that Pajama Sam needs to help correct out of control weather patterns in the world and to do that has to fix the weather machine. For example, he has to find parts, figure how to make them viable, and install them. But, almost nothing is direct. For example, he must get in the gate of the control center, but cannot until he can get past the gatekeeper. Or, he must find a way to open the can of solar energy that he has found before he can use it. Hmmm, how can he do that? So, it's 1-step forward, and 2-steps back - like many real problems.

Some of these challenges are difficult for a 4 year old, so I think it works best with children of that age if a parent plans on some patient side-by-side time with their child in front of the screen. For example, some of the concepts can be unfamiliar to a 4 year old child, such as what a Wing Nut might be used for in fixing the weather machine. But, if you have the time to spend to coach them through these parts, I think this game is a good complement to other styles of learning. So, my 5-star rating assumes some guidance for children as young as 4 years old. If they will be left completely on their own with it, I think it's more suitable to an older child.

One last point: My daughter now sometimes says, YOUR QUITE WELCOME in response to THANK YOU. The talking telephone in the Pajama Sam game replies to him that way (with QUITE) when he thanks it. There are many instances of polite behavior modeling in this program.

First let me say that all of the Pajama Sam games are great. However, this game dragged a little as compared to the other two games. There seemed to be a lot more needless running around to get things. Also, unlike #1 and #3, there was no danger. In #1 you had the impending meeting with "Darkness", and in number three you have to get the peace delegates together to circumvent a "food war". (In number two, angry Mother Nature just didn't do it for my kids, 10 and 5). The sense of danger gave games #1 and #3 more of a sense of purpose than game #2.

Sam is a great role model for kids. He's polite, energenic, helpful and up to a challenge. And everyone in the family loves his sense of humor.

I recommend all of the Pajama Sam games. They are all great and any differences are really splitting hairs. However, my kids favorites in order of preference are: #1, #3 then #2. I hope this helps.

If your child has played beginning level software and is ready to move on to more advanced gameplay, Humongous Entertainment's Pajama Sam series (and Freddi Fish and Putt-Putt as well) are an excellent choice. These titles take the cognitive tasks up a notch as children must accumulate specific items, navigate a number of locations, and use their problem-solving skills to help new friends and achieve larger goals. Along the way, funny and lovable Pajama Sam will meet a number of nice characters, visit a variety of interesting locations and play mini-games as he completes the larger task of helping to fix the interesting and entertaining weather machine. Along the way he will solve a lot o smaller puzzles. Specifics change if you start a new game, and you will want to play with your child a few times before they'll be able to enjoy it on their own, so each game is good for hours of fun.

This is a fine game in a great series. We have all the Pajama Sam titles and enjoy them all.

My three year old loves pajama sam, I made him a red cape so he could run around being pajama sam.
To the game, First you must find sams cape and then you find your way to the attic to face thunder and lightening. Thunder is a very grandmothery figure and lightening is like a dizzy maiden aunt.
You accidently press the red switch and have to find and mend all the weather machines before mother nature arrives. You also have to find the missing pieces of the jigsaw you spilt aand put it back together (there are a number of different jigsaws so you dont know which one you will get)
You have four weather machines to fix and they each have two places to hide, so the game is different each time you play.
Every time you fix a piece of the weather machine, thunder and lightening appear and congratulate you so there is plenty of positive reinforcement and encoragement for children to help others.
There is also a version of the game ludo, or maybe you know it as trouble, that I find my kids playing quite a lot (its a pity they couldnt have made it multiplayer) as only you and the computer can play.
Have fun in the greenhouse making apples eggplants bananas and pickles grow on little bushes, you need them sometimes. Or maybe see if there is a pot of gold under the rainbow you make. Kids also learn to follow a recipe, get everything right and you are rewarded with an animation and maybe something you will need later.
Overall its a great game with plenty of warm fuzzys.

My 7-year old autistic daughter loves this, and all the other Pajama Sam games we have. I only have to help her a little bit here and there to get her going, and then she will spend hours or days with this game.

In this one in particular (all 3 Pajama Sam games are great), a good feature is that you have to read the phone number, in the control room, in order to use the phone to make an appointment, to see "Mr. Somebody". And the phone number changes, each time you start up the program, so you can't just use the same one over and over again.

My 3 and 1/2 year old loves the movement and many levels of this game; however, she cannot do it alone. After we went through it together (and it did take quite a bit of time) she was able to navigate a bit better on her own. There are numbers/codes involved, so I expect the makers of the game knew an adult would have to help out the younger players as well. Imaginative and fun!

It's a pretty good game. I even asked Humongous Entertainment if they could base PJ Sam 4 on this, but they ignored my E-mail. Probaly because Artari made it. I think it's a really good game for kids and I'm dissapointed that I didn't see any kids reviews. I'm the first one to write a kid review on this! Wow! I'm not going to tell you the basic plot because practicly every other review mentions it. I really like how you sneak in, because I'm always making stories where kids are sneaking in places, unalowed. It's funny how the crowbar is useful so many times. I like the Snowflake Inspector Detector and I wish he was still there when the Snowflake Inspector's corned by the dust devil, but I didn't get what Pajama Sam ment when he said it reminded him of the villian on Pajama Man. I really love when Y-Pipe gets locked in the locker, but it took me a long time to figure out how you find out a birth date with an apple and it intrests me he's in Foster Boomdoggle's locker because it's the same name on the card he found. I also like the suggestions part when you press #2 on the phone. Sincerly, Russian Blue Witch.

One of the first things your kids will notice (or you yourself, as the game environment is surprisingly addictive and entertaining even for adults) is the number of hidden geegaws. For example, click on the mailbox and watch different things happen each time.

Similar to the old King's Quest style of adventure game (but simplified enough for kids as young as 5 or 6 to solve without any parental help), all three Pajama Sam games teach basic logic and problem solving, wrapped up in a wonderfully-drawn package. Kooky sounds and chuckle-eliciting animations abound.

Once upon a time when I worked in a nameless chain bookstore, we had a half-dozen computer stations where customers could try out demos of various titles; both kids and adults flocked to the Pajama Sam demo, and the first two installments of the series were our best-selling kids titles by a wide margin.

This third adventure (Sam is afraid of storms and must, in classic sleepwear-clad superhero style, face his fear with comic consequences) is not as innovative as the first two, but well worth it -- as are most of Humongous' releases.

Pajama Sam stars in his second game with a new plot. This time, he's scared of thunder and lightning. He goes up in the sky to stop them, and accidentally messes up the weather! He has to find four missing pieces before the weather machines are fixed. With lots of fun mini-games along the way to winning, Pajama Sam learns that maybe thunder and lightning aren't so frightening! This game should be played with a grownup. Some puzzles are a bit too challenging or complex for kids. Your child may even learn some manners from the talking telephone or the complimentary nuts! :-)

My kids & I really enjoy this logic & problem solving challenge! Directions could be more clear but overall very good fun! We look for games with less than obvious educational benefits, we want them to appear fun first to the child and learn without realizing it. The idea of facing very real fears of children is an added bonus for us! I struggled with things that my kids thought was soo easy, silly me! Great for the logic thinker in your kids! We can't wait to get PJ 3!